Adam lights his torch from Havrin's offered fire and swings it at the spiders, hoping that the makeshift torch remains intact long enough to do some damage.
+1 fire
Sorry, forgot to include the saves in my last post, here they are:
Fort Save 1: 1d20 ⇒ 17
Fort Save 2: 1d20 ⇒ 17
Round 1 (final):
Havrin lights Bea's torch, she prepares to charge the spiders, Adam fashions a torch, Jacyn charges across the swarms, and Sabrina & Katya flee the spiders. Map of the situation as of the top of next round is HERE.
Round 2:
Sabrina
Jacyn
Swarms
Katya
Havrin/Bea
Adam
Sabrina and Jacyn, you're up.
Adam's second round action was posted above... :) Hopefully everything is not as confusing as it was.
Round 2
I have spark if you'll allow that to catch the web on fire. Otherwise, she will cast it on anyone with a torch ready.
Seeing that riding through the spiders was as harmful to Smoke as to the swarm, Jacyn follows the lead of the others and pulls out his own torch, riding towards someone who's torch is already lit so he can use theirs to light his own.
Round 1 (cont'd):
Sabrina-done
Jacyn-done
Swarms-done
Katya-done
Havrin/Bea
Adam
Sabrina murmurs a brief prayer and the webbing around the fangberry bushes ignites in a rush. It burns away too quickly to do more than scorch the bushes themselves, but some of the spiders sizzle and scorch in the flames. Guiding Smoke with nothing but voice and leg pressure, Jacyn wheels around while drawing a torch from his saddlebag. The agile half-elf dismounts in front of Bea and lights his torch from hers.
Then the spiders move. Fleeing the flames, the arachnid army covers Sabrina (again!) and Havrin.
But the wizard has managed to sweep the last few spiders from her face and regain her composure. She moves back to the party, face set, and when she gets close enough invokes a broad fan of arcane fire. The heat from the flames is enough to raise beads of sweat on Havrin's and Sabrina's faces, but Katya's aim is true and the flames do not touch her compatriots. The spiders are not so lucky. Vast numbers fall to her spell, and the remaining few disperse harmlessly.
Beatrix turns a surprised look at Katya. "Well done! You've got some skill with magic!"
Adam is visibly relieved.
"The halfling consumption crisis is over, at least for the time being. And those were just the little ones. Who knows what else is lurking in that forest."
Adam shivers.
"I've never seen so many spiders amass so quickly. It was as if they were of a single mind. Very unsettling.', he says, trying to put out the torch before it is wasted.
Havrin, some of the spiders crawling on you got into your mouth and triggered a gag reflex; as Katya burns the rest of them you spend a moment hacking and spitting to get them out. Their venom didn't affect you.
At this point the party has a few handfuls of fangberries. Do you want to gather any more? (Katya, what you have right now would do for one potion, if you remember Bokken's directions correctly. He asked for seven potions' worth.)
HP 5/16
Dispite being used to living out in the wil where insects are plentiful, the vast number of spiders overwelming Sabrina start to take their toll before Katya is able neutralize them.
After any ill effects have taken their course, Sabrina motions for anyone injured to come to her side and lock hands.
HP 15/16
"Thank you, Sabrina," Havrin says gratefully. "The spiders barely wounded me, but you and Katya seemed to take the brunt of their attacks. I'm sorry I couldn't do more to help you both."
As Sabrina channels the energy into a positive healing force, Jacyn inspects the bites on Smoke's legs. Satisfied that her healing has taken care of them, he gives an appreciative nod to the girl, "Thank you very much. I too apologize for my apparent uselessness in the fight. I will try to be better prepared next time."
"Not to worry too much about that. I was useless myself a bit."
"Thank you father for answering my prayers. Sabrina say as she stares into the sky.
Then Sabrina looks to Jacyn, "Father always tells me that he provides us trials to help us grow. I imagine this was one of them. So, I know he is happy hearing your pledge."
Katya lowers her hands, which are a bit hot from the fire that was just a few inches from her hands a moment ago, she gives a short grin to Bea, "Of course, it is all I have."
Looking about herself to make sure all of the spiders are gone, Katya looks back into the thicket and shakes her head, "Unfortunately, I need more if I am to meet Bokken's request, if you all will give me a moment, I'll try and finish gathering the berries before more spiders show up."
Stepping to another unburnt section of the thicket, Katya goes back to picking the fangberries until she has enough.
Katya, the edges of the thicket are pretty-well picked over. If you want to pick berries from further in, it's a DC 20 Survival check to avoid taking damage from the thorns.
"Here, I'll get them for you, Katya," Havrin offers to assist the mage.
Adam follows Havrin and Katya with his makeshift torch. Hopefully no more spiders would show up, but with all the webs around, it seemed more than likely that they would.
"One of my former masters in Port Ice thought roasted spider legs were a delicacy. Not exactly for me, thank you."
Adam's comment elicits a laugh from Bea, allowing a slight reprieve from the tension she was feeling. "Don't blame you for that one, Adam." Still, she holds her torch in the ready while the others collect berries before finally putting it out and remounting her horse.
Normally anyone entering the thicket has to make a Survival check every ten minutes to avoid taking damage. I'll let anyone who exceeds that add the excess to someone else's check. So if Katya or Adam goes in, one of them will get +6 to their roll. Havrin, you gather one more potion's worth for the first check; no more spiders emerge to challenge you during your berrypicking.
Havrin tries to gather more berries.
Picking her way through the thorny plants trying to collect enough berries, Katya feels multiple pricks and scratches into her robes as she forages for the required amount, hoping that the pain is worth it for what Bokken knows about the area's plant life. Though Katya seems to be getting first hand experience in the matter, she doesn't complain over much about the situation, as if she has had to do this kind of painful work before.
Katya, despite Havrin's assistance you get a little bit scratched up in your first entry fully into the thicket.
At the end of ten minutes, you have a total of three potions' worth (unless someone else wants to help). During the second ten minutes, Havrin's woodland skill doesn't save him from a branch in the face. Katya, if you wish to continue make another Survival check.
As nothing else comes to attack while the others are gathering berries, Bea starts to get restless. "Do you uh...want some help?"
"That would - OW! - be appreciated, Bea!" Havrin calls out in response to the offer.
Chuckling a little, Beatrix puts away her weapons and wades into the bushes, trying her hardest to avoid the thorns, but still sticking herself from time to time.
Jacyn puts his sword away and jumps into the bushes, trying his best to help pick the berries, despite his lack of know-how in this area.
Second ten minutes: Bea and Jacyn have a terrible time of it, and unfortunately at one point one of them trips and manages to knock Katya into a bush. But that makes seven potions' worth gathered, which was as much as Bokken wanted.
Adam looks on from the clearing, far away from the webs.
"You'll forgive me if I don't join you. I need to remain unscratched and maim-less for my profession. I also am not nearly as skilled in the wilderness as you all."
"You'll forgive me if I don't join you. I need to remain unscratched and maim-less for my profession. I also am not nearly as skilled in the wilderness as you all."
"Was that sarcasm?" Havrin mutters to his companions within the briar thicket.
Put off by the swarm off spiders and not yet knowing Bokken personally, Sabrina doesn't see the point in going back into the thicket but she will help heal any wounds when everyone is done.
"Those look bad, are you sure the berries were worth it?" Sabrina ask somewhat retorically as before anyone can answer she continues, "So, come on then, let me tend to your scatches."
"Thank you again, Sabrina. Those briars are fierce," Havrin thanks the nature priestess as the healing energies wash over him.
"Well I don't think I'll be assisting you in getting into any more thorny bushes." Jacyn says, pulling thorns from his neck, "And my apologies, ladies, for knocking you further into the thorns.", he says, pulling one from Katya's shoulder.
Tension rises during the grueling process in the thicket until Jacyen sends them all tumbling into the midst of them. Despite the pain, Bea bursts out laughing as she lies next to her friends - suddenly overcome by the ridiculousness of their plight. She remains in a better mood as they finish and after Sabrina's healing she smiles and sits down in the clearing, wiping sweat from her brow. "Let's do that again sometime...just...without the thorns."
"Now, for that, I know a ditty or two." Adam offers helpfully.
Adam looks over his map, making sure that the scary web place was marked on it. "We're heading northwest still." At Havrin's nod, Adam sighs. "We're seeing more evidence of this Stag Lord fellow. I'm sure we'll have to deal with him sooner rather than later."