"Yeah...I'll fart or something. Bring down their wrath on us."

Those watching - Stealth and Perception checks.

Those not, please try a team Survival check (i.e. nominate someone to roll the check and then assist).

I guess I'm not on watch.
Alwyn has the best (i.e. he actually "has") the survival skill, so let's let him roll, assuming he's camping.

I know Elisile is on watching duty; who else is?

aid another: 1d20 ⇒ 2

"I burnt the water."

Hey, I even have ranks in Survival! 14+6=20.

I suck at Stealth AND Perception, so I'll help with the camping.
Survival:1d20 + 1 ⇒ (20) + 1 = 21

EDIT: Wow, way to waste a nat 20, Zack. Vethran is uncannily skilled in the art of making camp. Comes from his gypsy heritage, I guess.

Stealth: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (11) + 13 = 24
Perception: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (11) + 12 = 23

While Vethran explains the finer details of woodsmanship to the Shoanti, Elisile watches the fort, snug in her hiding place. As far as she can tell, the ogres do not seem to have any particular inclination to patrol the area. A few wander inside the fort, revealing themselves to view from time to time, but there seems no particular pattern. The south gate, nearest the waterfall, appears to be guarded by a group of ogres, but the other gate does not. However, that gate appears to be blocked by rubble.

Elisile will message back progress to the others if she can. Either way she will return to report after a few hours.

Apart from guarding the south gate, do the ogres seem to keep watch on the area? Does Elisile think it might be possible to approach the water fall unseen? Say from the south-west, along the cliff face or something?

After presenting the situation, she asks the others what they want to do?

What watch there is, apart from the southern gate, does not seem very organised. But there are probably quite a lot of ogres in there.

How many ogres at the south gate?

About four seemingly posted on guard duty, and maybe five or six more wandering about the bailey at large. A few also seem to come and go from the barracks building.

"I think the waterfall. Doesn't look like these guys are the hunting type. Guess I was wrong.
Hmmmm......maybe they haven't used up the forts' stores yet. Lazy great balls of bastard."

"You're probably right. But we need to snak in - we cannot face 10-12 ogres at once, much less the entire garrison. Do we have any magics that'll let us sneak up there without being spotted?"

Invisibility sphere or perhaps a Fog cloud?

"Get me some beans going; I'll kick us up a fog cloud."

Any more profound ruminations or ready to roll?

“Invisibility Sphere is known to me, but I have not prepared it. As the ogres do not look like moving, it may be worthwhile heading in just prior to dawn – that will give us time to prepare more suitable spells for a tunnel approach rather than an aerial one.”

“Invisibility Sphere is known to me, but I have not prepared it. As the ogres do not look like moving, it may be worthwhile heading in just prior to dawn – that will give us time to prepare more suitable spells for a tunnel approach rather than an aerial one.”

"I'm not that stealthy....I'll try whatever though. I'll wait around, if you guys want to."

"I'll wait."

So we're not flying in, then? In that case, I guess I'll just hang on to this scroll of fly. Also, I bought a ton of black onyxes so that I can make use of this animate dead scroll we found. I figure a few ogre-zombie minions couldn't hurt.

I love it! We waste the mooks at the gate, then animate them and send them off into the compound to cause mayhem while we run into the tunnels and hit the remainders from the rear (weren't there some secret doors from there into the main fortress?). Let's do it!

I love it! We waste the mooks at the gate, then animate them and send them off into the compound to cause mayhem while we run into the tunnels and hit the remainders from the rear (weren't there some secret doors from there into the main fortress?). Let's do it!

While zombie ogres are pretty cool, and we should definitely use them at some point (not withstanding Elisile’s personal distaste for the idea), I suggest we try to get into the waterfall tunnel without being seen by the ogres guarding the gate. Instead, we should try to employ hit and run tactics using the three or four secret tunnels that open up from the waterfall tunnel into the fort (if I am reading my map correctly). We’ll probably have more luck dealing with the ones guarding the gate from inside the walls (and then, yes, let’s animate some corpses and let them run wild!) There are secret tunnels emerging near the barracks and the stables. Perhaps a good strategy would be to try to ambush a small group of ogres near the north part of the compound (ie, near the stables, as they appear to have greater concentration at the south side, around the gate and the barracks), then set the resulting zombies against the gate guarding ogres while we dash back through the tunnels and attack the gate and or the barracks from the rear?
EDIT: or, as Veth suggested, keep them with us to attack the barracks / gate.

Agreed and agreed.

“Invisibility Sphere is known to me, but I have not prepared it. As the ogres do not look like moving, it may be worthwhile heading in just prior to dawn – that will give us time to prepare more suitable spells for a tunnel approach rather than an aerial one.”

Sure, if it saves time.

After fifteen minutes or so, Elisile announces that her spell selection has been adjusted.

Alright, ready to roll now?
I suggest we approach as close as we can to the waterfall through the woods / whatever cover is available. Elisile will scout ahead a short distance, with message on the party: Perception: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (4) + 12 = 16 Stealth: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (13) + 13 = 26
When we reach the limits of cover, Elisile castsmage armour on herself from a scroll, then invisibility sphere, centered on herself, and everyone keeps close (10 ft radius) to stay within the sphere. We move forward to the waterfall keeping as far from the gate as possible.
When we reach the pool, Elisile will cast alter self, assuming the form of a boggard, gaining a swim speed and darkvision, and lead the way in under / behind the waterfall.
If anyone has resist energy potions / scrolls, it might be a good point to use these too.

"Let's do it!"

Alwyn drinks his potion once we get underneath the waterfall - I don't want to waste the effect if we get spotted by ogres before we get there I'm conflicted about my armour - leather or plate?

"Let's do it!"

Alwyn drinks his potion once we get underneath the waterfall - I don't want to waste the effect if we get spotted by ogres before we get there I'm conflicted about my armour - leather or plate?

That's what I was thinking. Alwyn starts out in leather, lugging a big platemail bindle.

Perhaps it's the spirit of a dead Black Arrow, or just some sort of undefined yet benign genius loci, but just before the party's planned incursion into the fort, a foreign presence seems to faintly tell the party members how 'awesome' they all are, as well as how 'totally cool' some strange being known as an 'aubrey' is... [resumes lurking]

“Ghost! Kill it!”

Thanks for the kind words Marcus. Aubrey only does this DM gig for the sporadic comments of praise he gets from lurkers. Feel free to visit our discussion thread here to heap further praise on him ;-)

Yep, I can't actually stand the players themselves.

Ready to burn rubber with this plan?

Ready to burn rubber with this plan?

Ready to burn rubber with this plan?

The party move closer to the fort, keeping to the woods. However, there is a large open space beyond before the pool and the waterfall cave can be reached. Elisile casts her spell and the party, huddling together, disappear from view. However, that doesn't affect the amount of noise that they make, and not all are very stealthy.

OK, Stealth checks from everyone unless someone has a way to keep things quiet.

1d20 ⇒ 14-1 for the chain shirt=13.

Estimation on how long it would take for us to cross it? Illes can silence us but for only 36 seconds per casting of his highest slot (2nd level).

It is a few hundred yards - say a bit over a bow-shot. The waterfall itself makes quite a lot of noise - it is no Niagra but it falls from quite a height into the pool - so once you get close to there it should obscure most of the noise, probably a +5 chance to Stealth. Want to give it a go?

Eying the fort nervously, Illes turns his head into his shoulder and with his eyes closed whispers an inaudible prayer to Desna into his lightweight blue and yellow scarf. After that he quickly builds up a network of nearly silent communication between his friends from Sandpoint and pulls a scroll out of its case clutching it in his hands. "If they hear us, freeze and give me a second to try to draw them elsewhere. Don't break into a run or start blasting immediately or they will be on us and I won't be able to redirect them."

Message set up for whispercomm.
Minor Image in hand readied action to cast if we catch their attention.
Stealth 1d20 + 2 + 5 ⇒ (9) + 2 + 5 = 16 No ranks, no ACP. +5 circumstance
I was looking into holding a readied action to ghost sound over any critical fumbles on our part, but the range is only 40 feet so it would just make more of them look in our general direction. Can't inspire competence on stealth checks, and would only be one person if I could.

Stealth:
Elisile: 19+13 = 32
Alwyn: 13+1 = 14
Not including circumstance bonus from waterfall.

Vethran casts mage armor before setting off on this little adventure. He will also activate the Sihedron medallion for false life. 1d10 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 1 = 3 temp HP gained. Stealth: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 2 = 7. Does not include circumstance bonus.

I imagine the bonus on the false life is +3 rather than +1. 2nd level spell and all.

OK, someone needs to roll for Alwyn.

Stealth:
Alwyn: 13+1 = 14
Not including circumstance bonus from waterfall.

A group of four ogres strides out abruptly from the south gate. The leader, a particularly big specimen with a missing lower jaw to which it appears to have attached the skins of two beavers, peers about intently. It slurs, "Booraag jar gool."

Giant:

The others look around dully and another says, "Varaag jar."

I imagine the bonus on the false life is +3 rather than +1. 2nd level spell and all.

Via the party's message spell, Vethran whispers a warning to his companions. "They've heard us, but I don't think they see us yet."

What are everyone doing?