"Ragnar, no axe or sword will help against arrows. Plus, aside from Little Erik and Sahnd, these people do seem to see reason. Who knows maybe the owl will hoot this day.
Now Sahnd, why would I be working for the kobolds? No. How would I be working for the kobolds? All of their prisoners are sacrificed. Plus all of that crew is either kobold or dragonborn.
Archers and crossbowmen, what say you? We have shown reason and peace. You would be the ones thrown into battle over this. I think you should say what is on your minds."
-I think we should carefully watch over the two camps, and stand ready to light that signal in case the bandits take a more injuring approach at the group.
The archers look around uneasy, and one of them even tried to speak up. But Little Erik and Sahnd earn easily able to browbeat them back into submission and they continue to demand you surrender your weapons.
Clyde puts his hands into the air and motions his head towards his sword resting in the dirt. "Hey, I've put my weapon down already. Let's not get hasty." Clyde slowly paces to the side away from Sashah, hands still raised. "Though you know, you have your crossbows pointed at an old man, barely able to stand. If I were you I'd- Whoa!" Clyde ducks down slightly as if something flew over his head. He looks back, up at the leaves of the trees behind him.
"That winged bugger scared the crap out of me. There sure are a lot of owls out here today, aren't there?"
Please don't shoot me, please don't shoot me. Hopefully they're distracted in my direction. Come on, Sashah.
Shadoo muttered a quick prayer for the lost life, but didn't spend much time at all. He shook his head in agreement with the others, but seemed genuinely concerned about the movements on the camp.
I will stay ready to engage if they move on our guys.
Ragnar wears an irritated look on his face and lets out a heavy sigh.
It should not have come to this. I'll die before I'm taken prisoner by some madman and his lackeys. But I won't have thier deaths on me, not again.
He drops his javelins and battle axe at his feet, and as he disarms, he whispers to Clyde and Sashah.
"No matter what happens next, keep your hands up and stay out of it."
Ragnar takes a step forward, draws his greatsword, then stabs it into the ground in front of him.
"If you would disarm me, claim my sword yourself, Krulek. Unless your balls have fled with your sanity and honor."
He then crosses his arms and stares at Sahnd, waiting for his next move.
Rath quietly observes the show, almost eager to see how things at the campsite get resolved.
Sahnd steps forward to grab the sword, and Ragnar reach's out to grab Sahnd.
The rest of the bandit gang immediately responds with yellowing and hollaring, while Little Erik draws sword.
Kobolds
Rath <-- We are here
Bandits
Little Erik
Sashah
Shoo
Clyde
Shadoo
Ragnar
Sahnd (Grappled)
Sashah mumbles a short chant and an owl screech can be heard from the statue top. "LITTLE ERIK YOUR TIME HAS COME!
"Guys, there are about ten kobolds sneaking on the bandit's camp. We must alert them!"
Rath hears Shoo's comments, looking along the route between the two camps, still not seeing anything. Better safe than sorry he thinks as he does his best to mimic the warning caw they heard earlier, hoping to alert the camp below of the encroaching foes.
He then pulls back his bow, waiting for one of those scaly beasts to show themselves.
Seeing Rath getting ready in case the kobolds appear to be at range, Shoo calculates the distance and the possibility the kobolds have to take cover, assessing whether he and Rath have any possibility of disbanding them without turning into their next target.
Round 1
The Kobolds sneak up to the camp to observed what all the shouting is about, but they do not engage. At this point, only Rath, Shadoo, and Shoo see them ().
Rath makes a crow sound, mimicking the bandits warning signal.
()
With all the yelling and hollaring, one of the bandits says rather loudly, but not quite yelling, Guys! Stop! The warning has sounded!
Half the bandits turn and face outwards, their guard training setting I'm as they set an outward defensive perimeter. You can tell, these were the men and woman who were with the Black Fist originally, based on their training. The rest, with gear not as well taken care of, continue to step forward under the command of Little Erik.
All but two draw swords and close in to Ragnar with Little Erik. The last two keep their crossbows aimed at Clyde and Sashah.
Little Erik steps in for the attack against Ragnar.
This hit lands solid, and Ragnar takes 4 slashing damage (reduced due to resistance).
Sashah casts his spell and let's out the screech owl sound and the booming voice.
Seeing Sashah cast, one of the two bandits who had their crossbows pointed at him fires.
Little Erik freaks out, What.. who.. it's come for me! My time has come! Run away! He starts fleeing.
Several of the more undisciplined guards start to run as well.
Shoo does some quick math, and realizes that the Kobolds are in bow range, and they're unlikely to be able to attack him. Shoo is perched up on the King's Shoulder and he has a Zipline for quick escape. The Kobolds would have to spend a lot of time climbing up and would be easy pickings as they did so.
Shoo, Shadoo, and Rath are safe from their position, but if the Kobolds attack, it's most likely they would attack the guards.
Kobolds
Rath
Bandits
Little Erik (fleeing)
Sashah
Shoo <-- We are here
Clyde
Shadoo
Ragnar
Sahnd (Grappled)
Clyde sprints to Sashah's crumpled figure and throws the old man over his shoulder. "Not today, grandpa. There are many more scrolls and tomes in your future."
Clyde looks up and finds Ragnar amid the chaos(). "Ragnar! I'm getting Sashah to safety. Be back as soon as possible."
Clyde runs away from the direction of the kobolds to find a safe spot to set his friend down, scooping up his sword as he runs past it.
Seeing almost no future in his acting career, Shoo decides the kobolds will be too dazed by an attack from nowhere, so he fires.
On his turn, Ragnar enters a rage, then attempts to rip the armband off Sahnd.
Round 1, cont
Shoo and Rath fire into the crowd of Kobolds hiding just outside of the bandit camp, and manage to kill one of them off.
Clyde grabs Sashah and starts booking it while the opportunity presents itself.
Shadoo keeps an eye out.
Ragnar tries to rip the magical armband off, but it seems stuck on. ()
Sahnd tries to escape the grapple.
Round 2
The Kobolds, surprised by the assault of arrows, freak out. They start hooting and hollaring, which sets the bandits on alarm. Hearing the hoots, the Kobolds at the King's Cup (location 7 on the map) tosses his lit torch into the cup, and the oil in the cup lights up in flames, signalling the entire camp to attack.
A surge of Kobolds comes from the kobolds camp, with one of them flying on wings! They're headed straight for the bandit camp. Meanwhile, the bandits prepare to surge out of the camp, forgetting about their previous prisoners, to surge towards the Kobolds. An all out war between the two is about to start.
Round 2
Kobolds
Rath <-- We are here
Bandits
Little Erik (fleeing)
Sashah
Shoo
Clyde
Shadoo
Ragnar
Sahnd (Grappled)
On his turn, Ragnar tries again to rip the armband off.
When the Kobold takes flight, Rath grins, seeing a prime target for his bow. Expecting potential arcane trickery, he focuses more on accuracy over power, trying his jar one of the wings and knock it from its flight path.
Rath takes out the winged kobold right from the sky.
Clyde, Shadoo, and Sashah manage to escape to an area of safety. Ragnar rips off the armband off Sahnd and his eyes clear up as the madness departs his mind, and then he passes out.
As the battle goes on, it's clear the Kobolds will win the engagement. The act of breaking the bandit leadership has ruined their chances.
Over the next several minutes, the remaining bandits are either killed or routed.
Where is everyone: Shoo and Rath are at location 13, on the King's shoulder at the top of the Zip Line. Ragnar is in the captains tent of the bandit camp with an unconscious Sahnd. Shadoo, Sashah, and Clyde have retreated to location 10, the cave.
There is also a hidden scroll case. Opening it, you find a letter from a Zhentarim Agent requesting that Sahnd be returned alive to the authorities, as they have their ways of getting their members out of prison; but there's nothing that can be done if he's dead.
The old half-elf groans awake. "Wha-? Where am I?"
"Oh, good. You're up." Clyde responds to Sashah. "So not to alarm you right after your... quite frankly, miraculous recovery, but we have a kobold problem."
Clyde sets his large-framed backpack on the ground and begins rooting through it for a healer's kit. "How are you feeling?"
Shadoo gets closer to Sashah and Clyde, before speaking.
Glad to see you're up again. - he starts - It seems this cave leads down to the bandit's long boat below. Once our business here is solved, maybe we could use it to flee.
He pulls his sword, looking at the way the entered from.
I need to return to go help the others. Clyde can probably update you on our... Kobold problem, as he mentioned. - he smiled - I will see if I can reach Ragnar... Ideas are welcome!
After ripping the armband off Sanhd, and Sanhd passing out, Ragnar drops his body, rips his greatsword out of the ground, and attacks the nearest bandit (probably Little Erik)
At the captain's tent, Ragnar pockets the ripped off armband and rounds up his discarded weapons and Clyde's sword, then checks the chest he noticed earlier. After looting the chest of any valuables and shoving them in his backpack and taking another look around for the necklace (including checking if it's around Sahnd's neck), he'll lift Sahnd over a shoulder and head the direction Clyde went with Sashah.
Once the group collects in relative safety, Rath lets those who sought to keep Sahnd alive begin the discussion, since they saved the man from a few arrows in the chest.
A map of the Iron Route is spread over a table inside the tent. Various notations have been inked onto the map, and chess pieces are positioned across its surface. Scrolls, coins, and wax seals clutter the rest of the table. At the rear of the tent, an ornately carved wooden rack sits with a wooden chest upon it. The chest is locked with a heavy padlock.
The chest itself is locked, and it requires a DC 15 Dexterity check using Thieves Tools.
Maps and Papers: The map shows the outlaws’ hideouts in the Grass Sea and the sites of their ambushes. The paperwork reveals that Krulek is raising a mercenary army to overthrow the merchant houses and take control of Phlan.
A three-tiered chessboard lies on the ground just outside the cave, its pieces set in mid-game positions. A loaf of bread and a wineskin sit next to the board. The outlaw camp lies to the south, half-hidden behind a rise of boulders. There is a scrip case with a scroll in it.
The cave leads down to the bandits longboat. Anyone who goes down there will discover Rathene tied up in the boat. Rescuing her (again), she will watch over Sahnd and anything else you want to keep hidden while you go after the Kobold leader.
The Zhentarim believe that Sahnd has uncovered who their spies are in Phlan, and they want to know the truth. They want him returned alive and imprisoned, so they can get to him and discover what he knows and who he's told. Please see Handout 5 - Warning of the Zhentarim.
Everyone is back together in the cave at Location 10. What do you do now?
Sashah will look over Sahnd and, thinking Ragnar for grabbing his pack, will attempt to wake Sahnd up with some salts from his pack.
Clyde stands guard over the group as they recover. Peeking out at the battle, he scrunches his face into a grimace. "It looks as though the kobolds will win. I have half a mind to charge in there... We need to find that winged leader of theirs quickly."
Sahnd startles awake with the smelling salts. Wha... What happened? Where am I? Who are you?
"A great many things happened Sahnd. I need, from you, the story of Phlan, as you know it."
After some argumentation as to why he should do anything for the people who seemingly have him captured, he relents and tells his story.
He was a black fist guard who discovered a nobleman in a crime. Instead of allowing the noble to be arrested, the black fist leadership covered up the crime and instead framed Sahnd for the attempted assassination on the black fist leader, even though such an attempt was never made.
A contingent of black fists who knew the truth and disposed the fists for what they did helped him escape.
He led them away from Phlan and plotted his revenge against the nobles of Phlan. At first, it started with targeting their money by targeting their trade caravans. But that wasn't doing enough. So he came up with a plan to infiltrate and then overthrow the nobles of Phlan so the people of Phlan wouldn't be beholden to their currupt rule. Anyone who can't be prosecuted for their crimes is corrupt.
A few weeks ago, he received a gift from the Dragonborn Sorceress as a peace offering. Everything since then has been rather fuzzy. Until now. His head feels clear now.
As a final note, he asks where his people are and why none of them are here.