Aubrey's Kingmaker Campaign

Game Master Aubrey the Malformed

Quinn spends the evening hours going over what the bandit told them.

"Er, well, you sort of head down the valley, go into the woods, cross the river using the old log, go through the fairy clearing, over the ridge, round the flat rock, under the tree and you're there. More or less."

He figures that from aloft, he can track progress through the valley, even in heavy woods. The differences in the elevation of the trees will be seen between the valley floor and the sides of the valley.

Using that as a general direction, the river should be obvious, especially the log crossing. Once set on the crossing the general direction of the path should point a way toward the fairy clearing, again most likely visible from the air.

The ridge should be reachable, as it obviously crosses more or less directly in front of their line of march. Otherwise, why "over" the ridge?

From there it will be more difficult, but this close to a camp, the trails entering it should be more worn.

"...and more guarded, Quinn thinks to himself.

Quinn rolls over, confident he can set them on the right path in the morning, and falls asleep.

"No worries Lady Svetlana! We are new to the area, a small mistake in the course of our initial foray is not completely unexpected! Rest assured we shall indeed be giving the villains their just deserts! And I do not mean another helping of your wonderful stew!" The dandy assures their hosts jovially.

"We believe that we have now properly identified the path to their lair, and intend to surprise the rascals in their own den bright and early!" He re-assures them, (after a hopeful/questioning glance at Quinn) and turns in with the others.

HOpefully before they return with reinforcements! He thinks to himself before he drifts off to a worried sleep.

Reflecting on their previous journey, Hasren recalls that the ground party spent half the time looking out for the Moon radishes, bounding over to every likely looking spot. Not the best way to back-track to a bandit's lair. This time, we should try to keep our minds on business & work as a team to locate the waypoints given to us by the bandits. "Assuming the rascals weren't lying to us!"

Since the bandit's came on horse-back they must have followed some sort of trail. Especially in the woods! Why go cross-country if you don't have to? Maybe I'll check with Heimoth & Quinn to see if they think the bandits seemed to be the sort to be lazy travelers like that.

We should probably stick to one trail & follow it, instead of trusting we'll be able to get back to it after investigating a diversion or trying for a short-cut. That's probably where we went wrong, left one trail and mistook another for the one we had left.

Hmmm... "cross the river using the old log" Did they mean that literally? On horseback? Horses are pretty skittish about unsure footing, so if that was meant literally, that must be some BIG log. I'm not sure how we could miss something like that. Maybe once we get to the river, we can have Quinn quickly check up & down the river for such a crossing if we're not lead right to it.

Maybe Aleph, Marc & I should put our heads together to locate and identify the fairy ring. No wait! He said fairy clearing not ring. Is there a difference? I should definitely talk this over with Marc & Aleph. Or maybe Quinn instead? A druid should know more about the fey than spell-slingers like Aleph & Marc shouldn't he? Arcane vs Nature for identifying the fairy clearing?

"over the ridge, around the flat rock, under the tree and you're there" Well that's going to be tricky unless the trail's obvious or we all work together to keep a sharp eye out. I wonder if there might be another way to interpret that last bit. Aleph seem like a clever fellow, maybe he can puzzle out the wording & figure out if we've been led astray by a local turn of phrase or something like that.

Oh well... I'm sure it will all work out so long as we put our heads together & work as a team. I'll bring all this up at breakfast tomorrow & see what everyone thinks.

The party set off the following morning. Oleg and Svetlana wave them off again, though there seems to be a worrying lack of faith in their eyes this time.

With Quinn keeping them on the trail, this time they follow the trail more effectively, in line with the bandit's "helpful" directions.

OK, you have made it through hex 1 - I won't inflict that on you again. However, you will need to do the skill check in the next hex to find the bandits. This time, stick to skills you are actually good at. The point is not to try the obvious skill you are bad at, but to somehow extract relevance from the skills you are good at. Hasren has a good example with the Arcana check for the fairy ring, for example. And one skill at a time per person, in turn, as opposed to Marc's frenzy of ineffectual activity.

That said, I'm quite happy with the way you are doing these skill checks, by finding in-game reasons and so on. Keep it up, oh would-be monarchs, and maybe you will be rulers one day.

This time, stick to skills you are actually good at. The point is not to try the obvious skill you are bad at, but to somehow extract relevance from the skills you are good at. Hasren has a good example with the Arcana check for the fairy ring, for example. And one skill at a time per person, in turn, as opposed to Marc's frenzy of ineffectual activity.

Which is why I'll be in the background this time, as I'm worthless in the wilderness. Give me people! People to schmooze, bully or, well, beat into oblivion, not this silly trees-and-moss stuff.

Come on, don't be shy: skill challenge in the wilderness, part deux. Roll those dice!

Arcana 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (8) + 6 = 14 to know something ....anything...about a fairy clearing.

Aubrey the Demented/Malformed wrote:

This time, stick to skills you are actually good at. The point is not to try the obvious skill you are bad at, but to somehow extract relevance from the skills you are good at. Hasren has a good example with the Arcana check for the fairy ring, for example. And one skill at a time per person, in turn, as opposed to Marc's frenzy of ineffectual activity.

Which is why I'll be in the background this time, as I'm worthless in the wilderness. Give me people! People to schmooze, bully or, well, beat into oblivion, not this silly trees-and-moss stuff.

One option if you don't like your odds at succeeding at a skill check, is to choose to aid another at a much more modest DC. It used to be DC 10, & for our level I think it still is.

Also, I tried to provide justification for you to use your Insight skill (which is pretty good @ +7)to get us to the bandit camp. Based on your observations of them during the interrogations, did the bandit's seem the sort of travelers to blaze trails & go cross-country, or were they more likely to stick to well established horse trails. (or some other keen observation you might have picked up on.) We can see if Aubrey buys into that! :D

Heh. 'Frenzy of ineffectual activity' indeed! ;) At least he was leading by example! (An example of what NOT to do is still an example, right?) ;)

Marc is clearly relieved at the druid's ability to keep them on what appears to be the actual trail described by the bandits this time, and keeps his mouth shut from less-than-helpful suggestions.

As they near the suspected bandit's camp, he begins wondering how the defenses will be setup, and compares the possibilities to what he has seen and heard of before in the city gangs defending their turf.

'Lookouts obviously. And posted guards. If they have any discipline at all. Hm. I wonder. Any physical defenses would be determined by whether or not these are woodsmen turned bandits, or townfolk looking for an easy score? I'm hoping townfolk. Running into traps set by an experienced hunter would certainly put a cramp in my style!' The dandy muses as he avoids a nasty looking bush,....

My INsight and Per are +10 Which I hope might be helpful! I am trying to justify Marc's using Street wise (at a much more modest +4) to try and prevent being ambushed before we get there! If Aub allows, I will roll! :)

Thom, disappointed in their ineffective previous attempt, spends the time quietly on the look-out for every landmark spoken of in their directions.

Sorry for the brevity… work got crazy busy. Perception 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (12) + 8 = 20.

Also, I tried to provide justification for you to use your Insight skill (which is pretty good @ +7)to get us to the bandit camp. Based on your observations of them during the interrogations, did the bandit's seem the sort of travelers to blaze trails & go cross-country, or were they more likely to stick to well established horse trails. (or some other keen observation you might have picked up on.) We can see if Aubrey buys into that! :D

It's worth a shot. Until then, I'll stick with more regular skills.

Heimoth, keen on not returning in shame once again to Oleg and Svetlana, peers intently around him looking for the landmarks the bandits described.

[ooc}Perception 13+2=15.[/ooc]

What the heck, if you're not going to do it, I'll take the chance! My Insight's better than my Nature anyway!

Hasren tries to recall the bandit group's approach to Oleg's trading post, and their demeanor during the interrogation to gain any insight he can into their travel habits. Do they seem the sort to take the easy way? Should their trail be fairly obvious as a result?

Insight check:1d20 + 9 ⇒ (2) + 9 = 11

Gah! The dice gods hate me!!!

Two successes, one failure. Waiting for something from someone other than Thom, Heimoth and Hasren.

Trying to think like they would, cos the city is just another jungle....how would they go about getting here, and from where.....where I'd sack out, where I'd set up base to hit these guys from....what makes sense.....
1d20 + 7 ⇒ (7) + 7 = 14 streetwise....

Sheesh, that's weak, but as I'm feeling generous, if someone does Aid Another on his check then it will be a success.

Sheesh, that's weak, but as I'm feeling generous, if someone does Aid Another on his check then it will be a success.

If I'm precluded from helping/aiding then Marc's our best shot. Go Marc go!

Besides... the way my dice have been rolling, Marc's probably a better shot at helping! :P

Aid another and making himself look good doing it? THAT's my MArc!

Aid ANother: Streetwise:
1d20 + 4 ⇒ (6) + 4 = 10

Barely! I'll take it! ;)

OK, three successes, one failure. Everything to play for.

Internet down, posting from BlackBerry, functionality equals zero.

Recalling his thoughts from the night before, Quinn begins his methodical re-creation of the bandit's directions. (Rolling d20+9 Insight check the old fashioned way...on the dining room table...17)

Four successes - two more needed.

I think everyone has had a go so it's time to have another round.

As the day progresses,and the group is anxious about once again losing their way, Thom is overly eager to climb his way onto obvious look-out spots to help stay in range of Quinn.

Athletics 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (16) + 7 = 23.

Climbing back down he smiles, "He's still there.. just rangin' a bit further than usual."

Five successes - just on more. I can't take the tension.

... and I can't fight this feelin' anymore...

Given my luck with the dice, I'll probably only be adding to the tension, but hey it wouldn't be adventure if the outcome were sure! :D

Unable to anticipate the behaviors of the bandits, Hasren decides the best thing he can do is to keep an eye out for signs of passage, past or current once the party gets into the woods. Figuring these woods are so far from civilization that any signs of humanoid or horse passage has got to be either the bandit's or ours.

Not sure if this should be Nature or Perception, but since the bonus is the same... 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (6) + 7 = 13

Ooh... that looks close. I'm gonna need some help here I think!

Can anyone help me figure out if these are our tracks or the bandits'?

Aid Another for Hasren (I have +2 in both Nature and Perception): 11+2=13, so he can add 2 to his result.

"Well, I think they might be. There, look at the number of hooves, that kinda fits, right?"

After a ride through the woods, and more careful watching of the woods, the party find a trail of hoofprints. Follwoing them, they hear the whinny of a horse in the distance and the smell of woodsmoke. Is this the bandit camp they seek?

Just for clarity, that is a rhetorical question. Clearly, I know the answer.

60xp each.

Oh, well that cleared it right up, then.

Thom stops, a bit of nervousness entering his movements as he watches the direction of the woodsmoke as well as the actions of his compatriots.

Perception 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (15) + 8 = 23.

I'm glad ONE of us does Aub! ;P

Marc smiles beatifically at the scent of woodsmoke, like a weary traveler about to be treated to a warm, scented bath. The grin fades as realization dawns,...

"Partytime,..." He whispers,... rolling his neck until it cracks softly.

The dandy looks at the others. "So, how do we go in? We probably shouldn't take long. The longer we're out here, the more likely to be spotted!" Marc whispers softly.

"Somebody wanna have a look about, then we'll decide how it is we're going to roast this piggy."

"Maybe Quinn can scope them out in bird form. It'll be a lot less conspicious than if we do it."

"I agree. Quinn should take one quick fly-by to see what he can see, and then we should all,... introduce ourselves. Before they get the chance to prepare for company!"

You'll need Stealth to get close enough for a proper recce.

you want stealth checks from all of us or just from Quinn... It was suggested he do a solo fly-over before we advance as a team.

Just the ones doing the scouting.

Quietly Hasren asks "So do you think we took too long to try to bluff our way in like we had originally thought we might do? I still have the cloak & shield of one of the swordsmen."

After a pause,"Whatever Quinn's fly-over might tell us, I don't really fancy our chances of sneaking up on them."

"I might be able to sneak up to a deaf blind-man as long as someone puts me down-wind of him." he says with a grin.

"Yeah, I doubt our chances at subterfuge as well. Hopefully Quinn will see a good path for us to charge in and whup ass."

If Quinn is doing an overflight, will need a Perception check.

Rolling Perception for Quinn (hope you don't mind, man)... 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (19) + 9 = 28.

Quinn returns from his fly-by. He explains that the bandits have set up camp in a clearing bisected by a stream to the south. He gives a detailed description of the lay-out.

Right, A to Z across the top, 1 to 20 down the side.

Right, first the stream. This is one square (5') wide and runs as follows: L1 to L13, L13 to F13, and then F13 to F20. This is relatively shallow but counts as difficult terrain.

Then we have the underbrush. This covers the following squares: A-C/1-20, D/1-7, D/15-20, E-H/-14, I-K/1-2, L-V/19-20, P-Z/1-5, R-Z/6-7, Z/8-18, Y-Z/19-20, I-J/6-7, Q-T/10-12, T-U/9 and P-Q/13-14. This is shrubbery growing around the edge of the clearing, and counts as difficult terrain.

Next the trees: the trunks are one square across and are at B20, D2, E8, F11, J4, P16, Q19, S10, and U5. These are obstacles but can be climbed if you so desire.

There are two platforms set up 20' in the trees for observation. These are at E-F/9-10 and P-Q/17-18. There are also two horizontal logs at N-P/7 and H-K/17, which can provide cover if you crouch behind them.

The main living area seems to be the eastern half of the clearing, behind the central area of brush. There is a man on each of the platforms and probably six more on the ground.

You are approaching from the north.

OK - so, what's the plan?

Charge in fast, take them out faster? OR try to bluff our way in first? Since we can guess that they have passwords or something that we don't know, that might not be smart. I think if we stick in pairs, or better yet a whole group, that we can probably steam roll them. But if we get separated, (Like a certain Sorcerer last time!) ;P We just don't want THEM to gang up on US!

I vote go in fast/hard. Stay in pairs. Maybe use our skills to make them think there are more of us than there really are? Make their first reaction to run, not charge us back! :)

Sorry, I ahven't had a chance to make up the map yet. I'll do that as soon as I can. And as for the plan, Thom's fine with the hit'em hard/fast plan - especially as he's got no smooth-talkin' skills. Though if you all decide to go in soft with the smooth-talkin', I suppose Thom could try to go in stealthy... making our numbers seem lower. Either way, someone make the call.

I doubt we can smooth-talk our way in - and if we did, the only thing it would accomplish is to have all the bandits on top of us, letting them gang up on us. Looking at the map, I'd like to ride in through the XY gap to the southeast. Once we get inside the camp, Marc and Aleph knock out the guy on the closest platform while the rest of us engage bandits in melee. The island in the middle of the camp should keep the bandits from exploiting their superior numbers. Then, one we have taken out the first few bandits, the spellcasters take on the other platform while the rest of us keep fighting bandits on the ground.

You are to the north of the map. You can try and creep round but bear in mind you are on the main path and anything else might be a hike in which you crash about in the undergrowth, make a load of noise and/or wind up lost again. Not saying you can't do it, just be aware that moving to attack from somewhere else has its risks.

Good point. What I proposed should work for the EFGH gap as well.

underbrush e-h /-14; should the slash be a 1?

If not, I agree; move in from e-h. I'll gun for the guy in ef 9-10 platform.

underbrush e-h /-14; should the slash be a 1?

Crap! It's probably E-H 1-4, which completely screws up my oh-so-carefully laid plan. How much of an obstacle is the horizontal log in NOP 1?

Possibly we could have Thom/Heimoth move in taking defensive actions and become a moving wall with everyone behind, (this would require everyone Delaying their actions til after the two front-linters) then everyone who has range, focus down the people on the two towers one at a time (the Northwest one followed by the Southern one). Every round, we could advance in order, letting Thom and Heimoth go first - moving forward then taking a defensive action at the end of their turn, then the others filling in and ending with a ranged attack. The ground-bound baddies will hopefully try to close, and the ranged can begin to pick target based on necessity, while Heimoth and I switch to offense as needed when they fully close. Of course, it might need to be amended once we actually know what we face, but it's the best I can come up with baed on our information. Thoughts?

It's not the optimal fighting style for Thom (it negates his Censure ability), but I think the rest of the group benefits.