Asher indicates to the group that an unarmored member grab the suit. It may come in handy.
Who knows if it’ll be handy now, but we are in the wilds. Who here is good at throwing?
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Crispin is still offended by the very thought of anyone burning books and so is following everyone while quietly fuming.
He is carrying the Longbow dubiously as he has neither the strength or the training to use it properly.
Bey walks up and quietly takes the alchemist fires, I can use these well unless someone else has objection? He seems somewhat distracted by something while he walks. I wonder if the goblins even burnt the books or if it was done ahead of their arrival. They said that to become adults they had to face the ghost and not run. I wonder if another colonist was the betrayer and why?
At the sight of the swarmsuit, Brodigan smiles to himself, pleased that he prepared two castings of burning hands this morning.
"Anne has a good ability to toss things," he suggests as an inquiry is made about how to distribute the alchemists fires.
Meantime, Anne, who has never thrown an alchemical weapon in her life, absolutely beams that something resembling a compliment was thrown her way.
Asher begins to dig a grave in the corner by locations 3 and 11 after collecting a shovel from Becky,
Let’s finish this and explore that one next. We’ll set up a stash here of anything too heavy to carry while we explore. This load is impeding my movement.
Asher gestures to Crispin to bring him the bow..
As Asher is getting the grave ready, Brodigan, who has already noticed a lack of religiousy types in their group, stands over the corpse and says, "We gather here to lay Silas to rest. While in life, he toiled in the soil, we now lay him to rest in that very soil. May peace find your spirit as we lay you here, and as we unravel the mystery that led to your untimely end, may that bring you lasting peace. Nethys' blessing over your grave, our friend."
He then looks around at the group and says, "Would anyone else like to say some words?"
Becky shakes her head. To JeVeAnne she whispers, "He scared all the words out of me!"
Bey bows his head at the gravesight of Silas. Then looks up at each of the party and says Where next?
Asher limbers up his arm and tests the bow,
I’ve pulled heavier, but this will do nicely. Erastil, Deadeye, may your blessing guide my hand.
He gestures at area 3.
He pulls a cover of leaves and fronds over his old chain shirt, which he left with his backpack by the fresh grave.
Rest well Silas. We may have had a chance to know each other in life, but we will find you justice in death. Shall we, he says as he looks to the others.
After having Becky grab a couple of shovels, the least Mauro can do is put his back into helping out...
He has no words at the interment, but bows his head respectfully. Afterwards, with Asher pointing the way, Mauro leads off.
Abeowin and Anne each take one of the alchemist’s fire, nobody puts on the swarmsuit but its in the party’s inventory, and the party grabs several shovels at Maruro’s instruction.
The party picks a pleasant spot in the northwest corner of the palisade and digs a grave for the body. A stone is put at the head of the grave to mark it and the party makes a mental note to inform the two priests Kurvis Nurpico and Eamon Caranth so a proper ceremony can be held. In the meantime, Brodigan, who noticed a lack of religiously types in the group, stepped forward to say a few words. Asher also chimes in, which Silas - if he knew - would probably appreciate. The party swings back to the tool house to return the shovels and continues their investigation of the settlement.
The party continues to area 3, which is the building immediately north of the tool house. This rectangular building is constructed of mud brick walls. The building has a simple door facing east, but unlike all other buildings in the colony, it lacks any windows. A heady smell of dried plants, herbs, and dried meat lingers in the air.
The door lacks a means to bar it from within. Inside, the ground has been dug out to a depth of 3 feet so that the floor is lower than the ground outside. A short flight of steps set with flat stones leads into this darkened area, lit only by any ambient light coming through the door. The building lacks interior walls except for a few short partitions, and four stout posts support the roof.
The temperature is cool and the smell of rotted vegetables and meat is strong. Strings of garlic hang suspended from ceiling crossbeams alongside chunks of salted meat and bone. Debris and refuse is strewn across the floor between stacks of crates, boxes, and barrels against the walls.
Someone notices a cockroach scurry across the floor.
Crispin is still too busy fuming to notice anything.
With a gesture and few words, it takes a minute Bey summons a celestial
fire beetle in the room so that there is more light. Then from the doorway he states:
Some of these still look solid and sealed.Th cracked ones would explain the cockroach as well but where one is there will be many.
He steps back away from the doorway allowing others to confirm his observtation ofthe room.
"If this was an easy source of food," Brodigan poses, "why didn't the Goblins loot it?" and begins looking around for signs of whether or not the Gobos had been in there.
Still somewhat spooked from the encounter with Silas, JeVeAnne begins looking around nervously for potential threats.
Becky peers into the cellar.
"I don't see any imminent threats; let's move on."
There's a hint of nervousness in her tone. It's likely the teen--like JeVeAnne--isn't fully over the scare Silas Weatherbee inflicted upon her.
Asher walks to the threshold and sniffs the air.
This looks like a root cellar. We should check the state of the stores.
1 rank +3 trained +1 wis +2 racial +3 skill focus
Mauro stomps the cockroach that skitters across the floor, and says "Store-room alright. Much of it is still sealed in that goop, so the food probably still good, but that's for another day. I doubt there's any clues about what happened to make all the colonist disappear or die down here..."
We'll need to come back to check it once the colonists disembark.
Off to there then?
Abeowin shares that some of the barrels and containers have remained sealed and some sort of paste has been liberally applied to the outside. Then the summon carefully steps back and out of the building. Asher suggests the party should check the stores. Mauro confirms Abeowin’s observation. This is indeed a store room for food and perhaps the paste around some of the barrels has sealed and protected the food.
Brodigan wonders why the monkey goblins didn’t raid this area since the food seems like easy pickings. Becky, still recovering from the party’s encounter with the poltergeist, suggests the party move on. Crispin continues to silently fume over the intentionally destroyed books.
Anne spots another cockroach. Then, Mauro squints. The occultist spots a teakwood box approximately 12 inches by 2-1/2 inches by 1-½ inches. He picks it up. The box itself is worth 30 gp and contains a wand of goodberry with 49 charges remaining.
All of Mauro’s stomping has awakened something. There are lots of tiny wraps against the floor and on the walls. The insects begins to swarm and multiply in the corner. The party has the grim realization this building is infested with cockroaches!
Asher 23
Bey 22
Brodigan 20
Crisin 14
Cockroaches 14
Becky 13
Anne 4
Mauro 3
Bold may act.
Asher takes in the situation.
Looking at his bow, and then the swarm, he rethinks his presence in the storehouse and backs up, making room for everyone else to retreat.
Asher also visibly shudders.
F---king roaches. I hate bugs.
Brodigan's first thought is to rush out and leave the swarm along until he realizes that young Becky and little Anne, who are on either side of him, seem paralyzed in fear. With a mild huff, the wizard moves to the side in hopes of distracting the swarm and then calls out some arcane words after which an eruption of flames is unleashed from his outstretched hands.
Crispin realizes that this is beyond his means and quickly steps back out of everyone's way. He has nothing that can effect the swarm.
Asher backs up and prepares to defend the others if necessary. Brodigan casts burning hands on the forming swarm. The damage seems to go through but the wriggling mass looks barely affected!
Crispin quickly exits the building and makes room for the others to follow.
Like a pestilent black tide, the ravenous horde of thousands of tiny, clacking cockroaches climb and pile on top of one another!
As the swarm forms, those still inside the building notice that the cockroach pile seems to be avoiding the sunlight streaming in from the doorway.
Asher 23
Bey 22
Brodigan 20
Crisin 14
Cockroaches 14 (-3 damage)
Becky 13
Anne 4
Mauro 3
Bold may act.
The beetle rushes the swarm as if it is trying to get a fill of the yummy cockroaches.
Bey steps back further from the doorway and watches carefully ready to run if the swarm comes out of the building. He draws the acid flask just in case it might be needed.
Becky lets out another shriek and flees from the crawling horde of bugs. "Too many....too many!"
As Becky shrieks and flees, a perplexed-looking JeVeAnne looks to Brodigan as if trying to determine what she should do. As the human nods his head towards the door, the tiny Halfling gal rushes out behind her friend but stops close enough that she can keep an eye on her master to ensure he gets out alright.
"No blade is settling that back down!" Mauro books it...but stops outside the door, ready to slam it. "This door's closing in a hurry Brodigan, get out here!"
Abeowin backs up and sends his beetle into the swarm! The cockroaches recoil from the light, but there are so many cockroaches that the beetle has a minimal effect. Becky and Anne both flee from the building. Mauro follows behind, prepared to slam the door closed when the last person exits!
Asher 23
Bey 22 (and celestial fire beetle)
Brodigan 20
Crisin 14
Cockroaches 14 (-7 damage)
Becky 13
Anne 4
Mauro 3
Bold may act.
Seeing Mauro holding the door, Bey rushes forward to wedge in the 4 spear heads from the goblin spears. He places 2 in the ground and then pushes the other two in place behind the lower hinge on the door. Unfortunately he is not tall enough at 2 ft 9 in to reach the upper hings.
Content that the "little ones" are safe, Brodigan leaves the summoned beetle to its fate and rushes out the door calling out a, "Don't mind if I do, good sir!" in response to Mauro's words.
Giving a broad smile to the rest of the group as he exits and says, "Everyone alright?" he misses the look of sheer wonder and hero worship on Anne's face.
The beetle being given no other option nor command continue to eat the swarm.
As Brodigan runs out, Mauro slams the door closed. The swarm of cockroaches can be heard hitting the door, but none of them seem interested in being in direct sunlight.
The party knows the infestation will need to be dealt with eventually, but perhaps Ramona or another settler will know a strategy. For now, the sealed barrels and containers will need to hold out a bit longer.
"That's disgusting, but it's not what chased the settlers off, obviously. Let's try the next building."
Mauro leads off to the largest buildings in the abandoned settlement.
The party continues to area 11. Standing outside, the party sees two long, rectangular buildings constructed entirely from planks on a wooden frame, with a pitched thatched roof. Each building has a doorframe on the side opposite the palisade, but both lack a door. There are four window frames on each side of the long walls, a few of which have no cover and others only a canvas draped across the inside. A partial view of the interior is possible from the doorways. Inside, the floors are hard-packed earth, and along the walls are wooden bunk beds. Many of the pallet beds are covered with blankets that now gather dust. Those beds have sacks or tied bundles of clothes sitting at their feet.
Bey walks in and takes a good look around. Not seeing much but beds and dirty covers, he randomly walks to one of the beds with a bundle at the end. Grabbing the bundle he positions it on the bed and begins to "dissect" it carefully to see what is inside.
Mauro joins Bey, his horsechopper at the ready. He walks in, pauses for a second to let his eyes adjust to the gloom, and looks around.
1 rank +3 trained +1 wis +2 racial +3 Skill focus
When inside, Abeowin and Mauro immediately notice a tunnel underneath the walls of the northwestern barracks that surfaces through the earthen floor of the building at an angle. Peaking out of the hole, they spot the culprit. A bug-like monster drooling noxious green ichor from its clacking mandibles stares back! It has large eyes and awkwardly long limbs like its body hasn't quite grown into its features.
A pregnant pause passes between Abeowin, Mauro, and the creature, where they all just stare at each other.
Ankhegs are an all-too-common plague upon the rural areas of the world. These horse-sized burrowing monsters generally avoid heavily settled areas like cities, but their predilection for livestock and humanoid flesh ensures that they do not keep to the deep wilderness either. Their preferred habitat is rural farmlands, as the loose soil of such regions makes it easy for the creatures to burrow
Mauro's keen eagle eye spots an interesting-looking talisman hanging off one of the bedposts. He realizes there are probably quite a few things to be looted here.
1 rank +3 trained +2 int
"More bugs... Well, at least this one smackable..."
+2 Dex
A pregnant pause passes between Abeowin, Mauro, and the creature, where they all just stare at each other. Mauro makes a joke about the size of the bug being targetable.
Becky eventually wanders into the large building and gets a look at the bug monster.
Asher follows Mauro in, bow at the ready. looks around.
When he sees the bug he says as if the little ones back there weren't bad enough..
Bey quickly steps behind Mauro knowing he can't afford melee. He begins summoning a fiendish Sprite.In the middle of the room.